Dark smoke was still spiraling slowly up from the debris scattered across the plain when the group finally returned to the makeshift command center. The silence accompanying that walk was vastly different from the quiet that usually existed between them. It wasn't a comfortable silence, nor the kind of pause used to gather one's thoughts before a crucial decision. It was a heavy silence—a direct result of what they had all just witnessed.
The creature hadn't merely survived.
It had learned.
And that completely changed the nature of the war.
As soon as they passed through the great gates of Asgard, Monica was waiting for them, with dozens of maps spread across a massive stone table temporarily set up in the main courtyard. Officers were rushing back and forth, carrying reports, updating positions, and organizing messages from the watchtowers scattered along the border.
The administrator looked up as Strax entered.
There was no smile.
There wasn't even a greeting.
